Category: Defensive Line

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Entering the final 15 minutes in St. Louis, San Francisco had allowed 232 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns in the previous seven quarters. Perspective: The Niners hadn’t allowed a rushing touchdown – or more than 194 rushing yards in back-to-back contests – in the season’s first 14 games. More »

(12-17) 21:06 PST -- It's about time, right?
The 49ers' defensive line has been so good, for so long, that it deserves its own nickname.
So, make room, "Purple People Eaters" and "Fearsome Foursome."
Niners defensive line coach Jim Tomsula has a monik... More »

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As it turns out, Justin Smith might be even more adept at deflecting praise than fourth-down passes.
After the 49ers’ Pro Bowl defensive tackle sealed San Francisco’s 27-20 win over the New York Giants on Sunday by batting down Eli Manning’s last-gasp … More »

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Now this would have been a story: 49ers defensive end Ricky Jean Francois got so excited seeing his top-ranked LSU Tigers defeat second-ranked Alabama, he jumped on his hotel-room bed in his Washington D.C. hotel and nearly missed. Can’t you see the headline: “Defensive end put himself in traction in hotel while celebrating LSU win.” […] More »

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The situations are quite different, and so are the players.
But former Texans general manager Charley Casserly sees a common thread between his controversial selection of defensive end Mario Williams (and not Reggie Bush) as the No. 1 pick in the 2006 draft and the 49ers’ selection of Aldon Smith as the No. 7 pick in April. More »

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Less than an hour after defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said nose tackle Isaac Sopoaga was “highly unlikely” to play against the Buccaneers on Sunday, Sopoaga’s backup, Ricky Jean Francois made it clear he’s serious about filling Sopoaga’s various roles.
Could Jean Francois, like Sopoaga, also play fullback against Tampa Bay? More »

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To complement Tom Fitzgerald’s Sunday feature on 49ers first-round pick Aldon Smith, I decided to look at a few of his games on ESPN3.com. The Missouri defensive end looked rather ordinary in Nebraska’s 31-17 humbling of the Tigers on Oct. 30. Smith appeared much more engaged in the Dec. 28, 27-24 Insight Bowl loss to […] More »

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Mike Nolan called them “mudders” and “grunts.” They are the three down linemen who made up the basis of the 3-4 defense. Basically in such system they are the unseen and unacknowledged, unless one happens to be named Justin Smith. The 49ers right defensive end not only finished tied on the team in sacks, he […] More »

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Nose guard Aubrayo Franklin missed the 49ers’ just concluded two-day organized team activity. Although that’s not the way it looked to burgeoning nose guard Ricky Jean-Francois. For the second-year player out of LSU, Franklin is always there, at least virtually. Jean-Francois is trying to be Franklin’s backup after playing defensive tackle and end in college. […] More »

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When the 49ers hone in on scouting outside linebackers at the NFL combine beauty pageant this week, one question will float in the back of their minds. What do you do with Ahmad Brooks? This past season Brooks transformed from a frequently-released inactivated player to a legitimate pass rusher. Six sacks in limited duty once […] More »

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Sorry about the repeating sentences in the last post. I’m not sure what happened, but it’s been fixed up. In more important news, the 49ers called to say they’d released Melvin Oliver, a sixth-round choice from the ’06 draft. Oliver started 14 games his rookie season and then blew out his knee during last season’s […] More »

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Defensive line coach Jim Tomsula put a camera at the line of scrimmage during the last minicamp to better assess his players. The camera allows Tomsula to see who has the best jump and the quickest hands. A sprinters jump allows a pass rusher to get up field and into the back field in a […] More »

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With so many posts about Manny Lawson, it should be noted that the 49ers thought he would be a pass rusher when they chose him two years ago with the 22nd overall pick. In fact, some in the organization thought he might be a 12-sack-a-year man. Instead what they discovered was he was too light […] More »

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Spitblood has laid down an intriguing challenge – Pick the 49ers first-day draft picks for fun and prizes, the top prize being a smokeless ash tray. No, we will think of something else for the top prize. Who’s interested? The latest Pro Football Weekly had three anonymous takes from NFL football people on the tampering […] More »

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StonerLab suggested that Wednesday’s comparison between Justin Smith and Marques Douglas was incomplete and that a full comparison of their entire careers would be the best predictor of what they do in the future. Agreed. But all I had kicking around the house were two dusty tapes from last year. sfgate How will Marques Douglas […] More »

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A debate began on March 6 about the relative merits of defensive end Justin Smith, who signed an six-year, $45 million deal with $20 million guaranteed, and Marques Douglas, who signed a four-year deal with the Buccaneers at a fraction of that amount. Both had similar 2007 numbers with Smith making 78 tackles, two stuffs […] More »

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Marques Douglas stands 6-feet, 2-inches weighs 292 pounds, and will be 31 years old on March 15. Justin Smith is 6-4, weighs 282 pounds and will be 28 on Sept. 30. Both players are seven-year veterans of the NFL. Last year, Douglas made 72 tackles, three sacks and 12 stuffs, which are tackles for losses. […] More »

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Summation for Justin Smith’s plays against the 49ers on 12/15/07. For context check out the prior post, “Douglas VS. Smith” FIRST QUARTER -On run away from him, gets blocked by Adam Snyder and then scuffles with him after the play. -Gets blocked by Vernon Davis, after quarterback Shaun Hill fumbles the snap. -Smith gets up […] More »

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Summation of Douglas’s play versus Cincinnati on 12/15/07 For context look up “Douglas VS. Smith” post. FIRST QUARTER -Douglas doesn’t get off the line of scrimmage on a pass rush against guard Andrew Whitworth. -Running back Kenny Watson gets 6 yards through a gap to Douglas’s left. -Douglas gets no pressure against left tackle Levi […] More »

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It’s official, defensive tackle Isaac Sopoaga has signed a five-year contract and will return to the 49ers the team announced today. Sopoaga is still learning and growing as a player, which is evidenced by his leap in production from 2006 to 2007. edgecityfilms Isaac Sopoaga during his college days on the beach Here’s are his […] More »